Hello and welcome to my December update!
With the long-awaited launch of the P&O Cruises summer 2023 and winter 2023/24 programmes now behind us and of course the most recent Black Friday sales, my Sales Team have had the first chance to catch their breath since the start of the pandemic. It’s been an overwhelming 20 months and I have tried through these monthly updates to give you an insight into the ups and downs as we have navigated through the most difficult period the travel industry has ever experienced. Your subsequent feedback has been terrific and I sincerely appreciate the support you have given to my staff during these trying times.
We are still very much working in a pandemic and, of course, the last week or so the news has been dominated by Omicron, the latest covid variant. Like everyone, we have been keeping a very close eye on developments and it’s reassuring to see that many of the initial concerns are now being replaced with more optimistic messages. It has been great to read that the pharmaceuticals behind the main vaccines are now confident these will work against this latest strain, which of course was a source of concern.
Clearly, the reintroduction of PCR and lateral flow tests in certain settings have meant cruise operators have had to adapt to new requirements. However, I am pleased to report that all immediate cruises have continued as planned with little or no disruption and it’s great to see so many of our clients able to complete their travel plans! The only unresolved issue is unvaccinated children who may be prevented from travelling and we very much hope that these temporary restrictions will be lifted soon so that as few clients as possible are impacted by this issue. If you are travelling with children in the early part of the new year, we will be in contact with you directly when we get any news from your cruise operator.
Another consequence of the pandemic is that almost all communication with cruise operators has been by video conference since last March 2020 when the first lockdown took place. I have to say the technology has been amazing and it has brought home just how effective these meetings can be, but I have also been looking forward to getting back to normality with face-to-face discussions with our key travel partners. We recently saw the first in-house meeting at the Cruise Centre, when we were joined by both the Strategic Account Manager and Head of Sales from Celebrity Cruises. They were here to share the news of their latest ship Celebrity Beyond, who joins the Edge class fleet next April. We are delighted that Celebrity Beyond will be named here in the UK, prior to the sailing of her maiden voyage into Western Europe. She will then undertake a series of cruises within Europe, prior to moving to the Caribbean in October. These Edge class ships really do take cruising to a different level offering a true luxury product, with the large ship experience. There are still lots of opportunities to join Celebrity Beyond in her maiden season and you can find more details by following this link.
Our face-to-face meeting with Celebrity is the first of many planned over the next month or so, another positive step towards returning to normal.
On the subject of new cruise ships, Silversea recently announced they would be launching Silver Nova in summer 2023.
Reaffirming the cruise line’s commitment to the environment, she will be the first hybrid luxury cruise ship free of local emissions at port. Using liquefied natural gas as the main fuel will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% per double suite when compared to Silversea’s previous class of ships. Silver Nova will also be one of the most spacious cruise ships ever built; each of the 728 guests will receive personalised service on board with a crew-to-guest ratio of 1:1:3 and a butler service in every suite. Reservations will open on 6 January 2022 and you can register your interest with our Sales Team now.
We’ve also got the launch of the new P&O Cruises ship Arvia to look forward to next year. The inaugural cruise will set sail from Southampton on 9 December 2022 and I know many of you are already booked on this and subsequent sailings. Arvia includes a number of firsts for P&O Cruises, including a retractable SkyDome, Altitude adventure area and swim-up bar. This Excel class ship is the sister of Iona and I fully expect her popularity to grow even further when she enters the fleet next December. You can find out more about Arvia and see the latest updates as we receive them by here.
I have mentioned previously that over 200 ships from 68 different brands are now back in service and as we move into December, the overall figure is now 239 ocean ships. That’s an increase of nine since November, but more notably there are some 425,000 berths back in service which represent nearly a 9% increase over the previous month. Royal Caribbean International have the largest number of ships in service with some 20 ships now operational. Fantastic progress with many more set to return in 2022.
Thanks for following my updates and I wish everyone travelling over the next month Bon Voyage and have a great holiday.
Yours sincerely
Michael Wilson
12 thoughts on “Your December Update from Michael Wilson”
We travelled to the Med in November on Ventura, and wish to say how safe we felt. The app allowing easy booking for restaurants, the theatre etc was easy to use. We have recommended Bolsover to friends and hope to travel again in 2022.
Hi Hazel, we’re so glad to hear you had a brilliant cruise and look forward to arranging you’re future cruises for you and your friends.
My husband and I are going on Ventura in January for 35 nights to the Caribbean. I would like to thank all your team who have been so helpful when I had concerns about anything. All my enquiries were dealt with very efficiently. Also we booked to go with P & O to the Caribbean in 2024. What a good idea the pre registration is. We were able to get the cabin we wanted without having to spend a long time on the phone. We wish all your staff a very happy Christmas, and a healthy new year. It’s such a pleasure to book our cruises through your club
Hi Frances, thank you for such a lovely comment. We’ll make sure this is shared with the team. Our pre-registration process certainly makes the booking process easier and speeds things up. We hope you have a fantastic cruise on Ventura.
Wishing you all at Bolsover Cruise Club
A Happy and Healthy Christmas and New year
Hi Catrina, and to you too!
It has been great to get Michael’s update on a regular basis, and interesting to hear what is happening from a cruise industry perspective.
My wife and I have loved our cruise experiences, mainly with P & O and now having fully retired were looking forward to many more lovely journeys. Sadly we, being of a certain age are still nervous about mixing with large groups of people. the consequences of contracting an illness whilst onboard and unsure if todays cruise offering is one we will recognise, compared to our previous experiences.
Nothing would give us greater pleasure than to pick up the phone again to speak to your fantastic team and book another cruise, hopefully it will not be too long.
Hi Roy, thank you for your comment. It’s great to hear you’re enjoying our updates. Cruising is little a different to what we knew, but cruise lines are doing everything they can to keep people safe. We look forward to speaking to you in the future to hopefully arrange your next cruise.
What do you know is the situation regarding cruisers wearing masks onboard or elsewhere? Thank you
Hi Keith. Face mask requirements are dependent on the cruise line. Most do require you to wear masks inside when walking around and in the theatre. Requirements are frequently changing though so please do check with your cruise line before travel.
Many thanks to Poppy and her team who have been so helpful during what has been a very traumatic and difficult time for all. They are a tremendous asset to your club.
Hi Adrian, thank you for your lovely comment. I’ll pass this on to Poppy and our team.